Over at the Portland City Club blog, Chris Coleman notices that Portland seems to be on the rise (contrary to popular belief):

A bit more interesting is the fact that we lead the country in terms of Women-Owned Businesses (Center for Women's Business Research), and downright startling is the news that Oregon's Business Climate is ranked 9th best in the country (the Tax Foundation). How do you square that with the consistent carping you hear from our business execs? ...

In other critical areas that contribute to economic strength these days, Portland's scores continued to amaze: in terms of "tolerance" we rank second nationally; in terms of physical fitness (yes, this actually does correlate to regional creativity) Portland ranks sixth; in terms of density of high tech companies we rank 10th; in both the gay index and the bohemian index we rank 10th; and at the same time we are the most child-friendly city in America! ...

But more importantly, by [Richard] Florida's estimation, the aggregate of these factors position Portland to complete beautifully in the economic arena taking shape before us.

So, when are we going to start admitting that our star is in the ascendant? We love to complain about our problems and inadequacies so much - yet whether we are ready or not - Portland's moment on the world stage is arriving.

To the Oregon Legislature:

Enough is enough. Twice in two years, reasonable gun safety proposals have not even received a vote in the Oregon Legislature. No solution is perfect, but we must act now to save lives. We ask you to commit now to passing reasonable gun safety laws at your next opportunity.

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This petition sponsored by BlueOregon and Oregon NOW. By signing, you agree to receive email updates from BlueOregon and Oregon NOW about this petition and other critical issues. (You may always unsubscribe, of course.) Learn more.

To the Oregon Legislature:

Enough is enough. Twice in two years, reasonable gun safety proposals have not even received a vote in the Oregon Legislature. No solution is perfect, but we must act now to save lives. We ask you to commit now to passing reasonable gun safety laws at your next opportunity.

First Name*

Last Name*

Email Address*

Zip Code*

This petition sponsored by BlueOregon and Oregon NOW. By signing, you agree to receive email updates from BlueOregon and Oregon NOW about this petition and other critical issues. (You may always unsubscribe, of course.) Learn more.